Madison times. (Tallulah, Madison Parish, La.) 1884-1???, 1887-03-12
MARRIAGE IN CHINA
Life's Flower, Love, as Found In the tlo"ery
Kingdom.

Kingdom.
From the Brooklyn Citizen.
"a Chinese love letter! Have | any
old-fashioned Chinese love letters in
my trunk? Have gilt-edged Chinese
billot.doux with a monogram like a
cows track? There was never a love
letter written in Chinese. No Chinese
maiden ever penned a billet-doux or
sent valentine"
Rather sadly was this said by p ro-
mantle young Chinaman. Mr.. Hong
Wing, who is noted among the Chinese
for the skill with which he plays on
the mandolin.
ain China" continued he, ga man
never sees his wife until he is welded
to her for life. and sometimes he does
not see her then, for she may refuse to
remove her veil until three days have
elapsed after the wedding. II he
doesn't like her he cannot get a die
yorce, but he may marry another
wife, and then another, until he has
gone through the blindfold lottery
often enough to get one that suits
him. Some of these Chinese CrOesuses
have hundreds of wives. There was
an old bachelor who took it into his
head to Get married one winter, and
he married two hundred wives before
he got through. Tie last wife is the
favorite, but the first one is the boss. y
"If n man never sees his wife before
their wedding, how does he make love
to herr"
"He doesn't make love to her. His
mother arranges the match, and his
future mother-in-law makes love to
him. 1t is a sour courtship. Children
are formally engaged to other children
that they haven ever seen, at the tender
age OF 9 or 10, and after an engage
ment OF ten or twelve years, they get
married"
"Does Chinaman ever marry his
cousin?"
mo, marriage OF cousins was new
er heard of in China. A man may no
ilOIG Ills COllClll Nhlllct lAlflli
in Ens land man may marry his de-
ceased wife's sister. You talk about
your old families here, and your old
families are only five generations old.
In China families are seventy
five and eighty generations old,
and every member has COM
plete record of his ancestors for
all these generations. The remotest
kinship prevents marriages in China,
and if two families have the taintest
Imaginable kinship seventy-five gener-
ations back their children cannot
marry.
What are the most common fami.
lies in your country"
1.-THE Chens. the Wones and the
Lees. The Chens are the Smiths Of
China, the Wongs are the Joneses. and
the Lees are the Browns. A Mr.. Chen
would marry Miss Wong, but he
wouldn't marry a Miss Chen. Per.
haps that is the reason why the old
folks make the matches. 1t prevents
the Chens from falling in love with
one another"
"Are the Chinese ladies cultivated"
'Oh, yes; they can read and write
draw, paint and embroider. They
never 90 out on the street with
their husbands. Ii u Chinese
man and woman were to walk on tn,
street arm-in-arm in their country a:
American men and women do, they
would be mobed. The women stay in
doors. Iithey wish to visit their moth
ers they take conveyances. Sometime.
they may be seem walking in the parl
with their children"
'''You are married."
Eyes"
ITO q Chinese LADY,"
''No; to an American. ! came Il
this country when nut IL years old
Though | was 5000 miles from China
my mother betrothed me to littl,
Chinese girl | had never seen. NJ
mother used 20 write to me how small
her feet were, howpretty she was, an.
what beautiful cat-like nose she had
When / was 20 years old mother sem
me u letter, saying l was old enough
to get married, and must come bacl
to China and marry the girl"
w ustl ulli YOU
81 thought | was old enough, anC
so fell Heels over cue in love with al
American girl IN Nevada, and marie,
her. We had our pictures taken, anC
i sent one to my mother, togethe
with Sn account OF the wedding, which
translated from an American pape
INTO Chinese"
What happened"
'T'he next thing l knew my uncl
and four cousins came on to United
States and had me arrested for bigamy
was taken before a court and tried
My uncle went on thestand and swor
that had a wife in China"
"What did you do them"
81 thought was in q box, as yor
Americans say. The Judge asked TIN
witnesses how old l was when | LEI
China. They replied that my mothe
had picked her out for me, and that
/ in Chinese law. was the same as mar
xsage. The Judge said that they didn'
have any Chinese statutes in thi
country, and my uncle innocently re
Piled that he would send to China 70
some. Everybody in the court laughed
and, as l lived in the town ever sine
lcame to America, all knew that Iha'
lett China little boy, so the jury az
quilted me. My uncle told the Judg
that he wonld be beheaded when h
went back to China, which was
monstrous flo with which he intende
to scare the Judge. have never bee
back to China, and suppose the littl
whom l never saw is a gras
low. Poor child"